"What do I do with my life? What do I want? Where am I going?": These are questions that people ask themselves quite frequently. Usually, this kind of reflection leads us to conceive and set our goals. While some people are content with giving vague or generic answers, others use the same questions to establish concrete and actionable goals. If you take the time to write clearly what you want to achieve, you will be more likely to accomplish it and realize that its accomplishment is closely linked to personal happiness and well-being.
Steps
Part 1 of 2: Define Your Goals
Step 1. Establish what you want
If you have a general idea of what you want or want to achieve, you will surely be tempted to get to work right away. On the contrary, if you do not have precise goals, you run the risk of applying yourself or heading towards something confusing or completely different from what you had established at the beginning. Therefore, by defining your goals, you will avoid wasting time and energy and will be more motivated to achieve them.
- For example, in the absence of a structure of well-defined rules or instructions, there is a risk that employees will not feel motivated to perform a certain task. Instead, they are more incentivized to work when they have a clear idea of what they need to do and the feedback they receive.
- Here are some examples of vague or generic goals: "I want to be happy", "I want to be successful" and "I want to be a good person".
Step 2. Establish the terms in detail
This aspect is essential to understand what you are really trying to achieve. Clarify all generic or approximate terms. For example, if you decide to succeed, you need to establish that you mean success. While for some people it means earning large sums of money, for others it may mean raising healthy and confident children.
By more carefully defining general terms and goals, you will begin to more accurately outline who you might become or what characteristics belong to them. For example, if you want to be successful in your working life, you may want to be professionally prepared to launch into your career
Step 3. Ponder to see if you really want certain things
It is normal to believe that you want something without questioning what moves your desire. However, sometimes we realize that certain goals do not actually correspond to what we personally dream and desire. For example, many aspirations may depend on social perceptions and the ideas molded around those perceptions: many children say they want to be great doctors or firefighters, without understanding what it really means, only to discover, once they grow up, that their intentions have changed.
- Ask yourself if your goals are conditioned by the people around you: maybe they are influenced by the expectations of parents or partners or by the social pressures exerted by peers or the mass media.
- A goal should be something you intend to achieve for yourself, not someone else.
Step 4. Consider your motives
Are you trying to do something to prove someone wrong? While each individual may have their "good" reasons, you need to ask yourself if your goals are the right ones. If not, you may feel unsatisfied, if not downright drained.
For example, if you want to become a doctor, is this desire motivated by the idea of helping people or by the fact that you intend to earn a lot of money? You may have a hard time achieving a goal or feeling fully satisfied if the motivation is wrong
Step 5. Set realistic goals
In these cases it is easy to get carried away. However, be aware that some aspects may get out of your control and even become a problem, depending on what you set out to achieve. Therefore, try to set realistic and achievable goals.
For example, if you wish to become the greatest basketball player to date, certain factors such as age and height may limit you and exceed your abilities. So, if you set goals that take a lot of effort to achieve, you run the risk of feeling disappointed and unmotivated
Part 2 of 2: Write your Goals
Step 1. Imagine your possibilities
Find a quarter of an hour to describe what you dream and intend to accomplish in the future. You don't have to define and organize everything you intend to achieve by thread and by sign. Just try to outline your goals and aspirations in a way that is consistent with your identity and values. If you get stuck, try some free writing exercises. Could you describe:
- Your ideal future
- The qualities you admire in others
- What you could improve
- What you want to deepen
- Bad habits you would like to correct
Step 2. Break your goals into small stages
Once you become more aware of your desires and your ideal future, set goals that will help you achieve everything you aspire to. Be specific when describing them. If what you intend to achieve is quite important or takes a long time, break it down into smaller stages or levels. Consider the intermediate stages as strategic means to make your dreams come true.
For example, "I want to be a good runner by my fifties" is a somewhat vague goal that takes a long time (depending on how old you are when you formulate it). A better alternative would be: "I want to train for a half marathon. I intend to participate in this race within one year and run for a full marathon within the next five."
Step 3. Organize your goals based on the impact they have on your life
Look at your goals and decide which ones are the most important or beneficial. Analyze them one at a time and ask yourself how you might make them happen, how long it will take, and the effects they will have on your life once you reach them. You should also ask yourself why one goal is more important than another. Make sure they don't conflict with each other.
By organizing them according to the impact they will have on your life, you will be more motivated to get busy. Furthermore, you can imagine the path to achieving them and the potential benefits that you would derive from it
Step 4. Establish historical milestones and deadlines
By setting shorter parameters and chronological limits for each destination or stage, you can keep track of your progress. Once you pass a milestone, you will feel more satisfied and motivated and will have a clearer idea of what works and the things you should improve.
- For example, if your goal is to run a half marathon within one year, it means you will need to train over the next six months. Once you pass this milestone, you will have to continue for six more. By doing this, you have the possibility to change dates and deadlines if you realize from the beginning that you need more time.
- Try using a calendar to stay focused on your goals. It will act as a visual reference point that will remind you in which chronological order you have set the various milestones. Plus, it's extremely rewarding to physically cross a goal off your list once you've achieved it.
Step 5. Try the so-called S. M. A. R. T
, that is the scheme for describing the objectives.
Look at each goal and write to what extent it is accurate (S - specific), measurable (M - measurable), achievable (A - attainable), relevant or realistic (R - relevant / realistic) and circumscribable over time (T - time-bound). For example, here's how you could make a rough goal like "I want to be a healthy person" more specific using the SMART scheme:
- Precise: "I want to improve my health by losing weight".
- Measurable: "I want to improve my health by losing 20 kilos".
- Achievable: "Even if I can't lose 50 kg, 10 kg is an achievable goal."
- Relevant / Realistic: You may remember that by losing 10 kg, you will have more energy and feel more satisfied. Realize that you have to do this for yourself and no one else.
- Limited in time: "I want to improve my health, losing 10 kg within the next year, with an average of 700 g per month".
